China Sends Three Astronauts to Space Station for Research

On Wednesday, China sent three astronauts to its permanently inhabited space station to conduct various scientific experiments, including those focused on developing human habitats.

The Shenzhou-19 spacecraft, carrying its crew, lifted off at 4:27 a.m. (2027 GMT) from the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Centre in northwest China, according to state media reports.

“During the Shenzhou-19 mission, 86 space science and technology experiments will be conducted in areas such as space life sciences, microgravity physics, materials science, medicine, and new technologies,” said Lin Xiqiang, deputy director of the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA), during a press conference on Tuesday.

One notable experiment will test bricks made from simulated lunar soil in space conditions. If successful, these bricks could be essential for constructing a permanent lunar research station, which China aims to complete by 2035, as using lunar materials would be more practical than transporting them from Earth. These bricks are scheduled to be delivered to the Shenzhou-19 crew next month via a separate uncrewed cargo flight.

Shenzhou crewed missions have been a staple of China’s space programme for the past two decades, with increasing frequency in recent years as the country developed and began operating its “Tiangong” space station, officially completed in November 2022. The rapid progress of China’s manned and unmanned space programme has raised concerns in the United States, which has faced challenges with its own crewed missions.

Two NASA astronauts who were transported to the International Space Station by Boeing’s Starliner capsule in June remain stranded there due to unexpected issues with the spacecraft’s propulsion system, with a planned return on a SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft in February 2025.

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To mitigate similar risks, Lin noted that the emergency response plan has been “continuously optimised” to provide astronauts with more time to address scenarios such as potential damage to the Shenzhou-19 from space debris. He added that Shenzhou-20 and its launch vehicle are on standby for an emergency rescue mission if needed.

Since the launch of Shenzhou-14 in June 2022, subsequent missions have involved three astronauts on six-month stays in space, with overlapping periods where departing crew members hand over the station to newcomers. The Shenzhou-19 crew is expected to return to Earth in April or May next year.

Lin mentioned that two of the three astronauts on Shenzhou-19, both born in 1990, are on their first spaceflight, with Wang Haoze also being the third female Chinese national to travel into space. The crew leader, 48-year-old Cai Yuzhe, was part of the Shenzhou-14 mission that completed the construction of Tiangong. All three crew members are also part of the Chinese military’s air force.

As Tiangong nears its second anniversary, China’s focus has shifted towards achieving a manned moon landing by 2030. In May, the Chang’e-6 lunar probe was launched from Hainan province and successfully returned a month later, making China the first country to retrieve samples from the moon’s far side, despite the mission being uncrewed.

The two younger members of the Shenzhou-19 crew were part of the third batch of astronauts selected for future spaceflights. The fourth batch, announced in 2022, will specifically focus on moon landings rather than just missions to the Tiangong space station, as explained by Lin.

He stated, “(The training content of the fourth batch) will extend the astronauts’ skills, from operating spacecraft to driving lunar rovers, identifying celestial bodies to geological exploration, and adapting from weightlessness in space to carrying heavy loads on the moon.”